Violence against conservationists in Malta

The effects of the smear campaign against bird conservationists in Malta should not be minimised.

European Voice

7/7/10, 9:00 PM CET

Updated 4/12/14, 7:49 PM CET

The Maltese hunting lobby denies the true scale of illegal hunting and also argues that hunters have a right to kill migratory turtle doves and quail during their breeding season (“Critique of Maltese hunters is wrong and alarmist”, 1-7 July). Their refusal to abide by the rules that bind all European hunters is matched by their denial of the impact of their smear campaign against those calling for full enforcement of the birds directive.

In press statements issued by the FKNK (Hunters Federation), conservationists have been accused of being “foreign mercenaries” and of “provoking serious incidents”. Conservationists have also been promised “the full wrath of Maltese hunters and trappers” and warned that “those who sow the wind reap the whirlwind”. BirdLife Malta has also been publicly assured by the hunting federation that “they fear that things will get worse, they might”.

On the federation’s website forum, comments were published that promised “a war that will wipe the smile of your face”, that “if they don’t listen, they will be made to listen”, and “they will have to pay and Malta is small”.

It took months before these comments were removed, and only after BirdLife Malta insisted that the police take action.

Lino Farrugia and Mark Mifsud Bonnici, both of whom “categorically deny” running hate campaigns, say conservationists were attacked over the past three years because the aggressors were “provoked”, as if arguing for the law to be upheld or bird-watching in the countryside can ever be construed as provocation.

Over the years, the attacks on conservationists have become more violent and frequent. They peak during bird migration periods, when BirdLife’s campaign against illegal hunting is strongest.

The only aggressors convicted to date were two people who violently assaulted BirdLife volunteers last April. Even then, Farrugia publicly stated that the bird-watchers had provoked the attack.

Conservationists asking for proper law enforcement cannot bow to aggression. But it is the European Commission’s duty to ensure that Europe’s conservation laws are safeguarded.